Is Trump Immune From Criminal Charges? What To Know About ‘Presidential Immunity’ As Appeals Court Hears Jan. 6 Case.

Topline A federal appeals court will hear arguments Tuesday over whether criminal charges against former President Donald Trump should be thrown out because he has “presidential immunity”—the highest profile test yet of Trump’s argument he’s immune from criminal prosecution for acts he took while president, which he’s frequently claimed to try and evade legal consequences.

Then President Donald Trump speaks to supporters from The Ellipse near the White House on January 6, ... [+] 2021, in Washington, DC. Key Facts A panel of appeals court judges will hear Trump’s motion to dismiss federal charges against him for trying to overturn the 2020 election Tuesday, as Trump argues the indictment should be thrown out because he’s “immune” from criminal prosecution for acts he undertook in office.

The appeals court was asked to hear the case after U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan rejected Trump’s argument—declaring the ex president’s time in the White House doesn’t give him the “divine right of kings to evade the criminal accountability that governs his fellow citizens”—and the Supreme Court declined to hear the case immediately before the appeals court could rule.

Trump’s effort to dismiss the federal election case is part of a string of cases in which the ex president has claimed “presidential immunity” to get out of legal problems, including in a separate criminal case for trying to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia , multiple civil cases seeking to hold him liable for the Jan.

6 riot and a civil defamation case brought against him by writer E. Jean Carroll after he attacked her for accusing him of sexual assault. The DOJ has long held that presidents cannot be criminally indicted while in office—arguing in a memo it “would impermissibly undermine the capacity of the executive branch”—and the Supreme Court ruled in Nixon v.

Fitzgerald that presidents can’t be held liable in civil cases for actions they undertook as part of their official duties, though the high court separately found in Clinton v. Jones that presidents can be sued in civil court for actions taken before they were president. Whether ex presidents can face criminal charges for actions they took while in the White House is still unsettled, however, with the Supreme Court yet to weigh in on that particular issue.

Federal district and appeals court judges have ruled the civil cases against Trump for allegedly inciting Jan. 6 can move forward despite the Nixon v. Fitzgerald precedent, saying Trump’s efforts to overturn the election and allegedly encourage supporters to riot were not part of his official duties as president.

Courts have also repeatedly rejected Trump’s immunity claims in Carroll’s case against him, with an appeals court finding in December that Trump didn’t bring up the immunity argument soon enough for it to be used in the case. What To Watch For It’s unclear when the appeals court will rule after it hears arguments Tuesday in the federal election case, and once it does, it’s likely the case will get appealed again and ultimately end up before the Supreme Court.

The appeals process is expected to delay Trump’s planned March trial date in the criminal case, though it’s too soon to say by how much. Trump has also suggested he intends to appeal the immunity rulings against him in the Carroll and Jan. 6 civil cases to the Supreme Court. Trump asked the state judge overseeing his criminal case in Georgia to throw out the charges against him due to presidential immunity on Monday, but it remains to be seen how quickly the court will rule.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to all of the criminal charges against him. Surprising Fact The Supreme Court has ruled against Trump having legal immunity once before, finding in 2020 that the then president had to comply with a grand jury subpoena for his tax returns. “No citizen, not even the President, is categorically above the common duty to produce evidence when called upon in a criminal proceeding,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the court.

Contra Trump has argued he’s given immunity by the Constitution’s Impeachment Judgment Clause, which suggests judgements in impeachment cases “shall not extend further than to removal from Office,” which the DOJ noted means, in Trump’s view, that “the President may be charged by indictment only in cases where the President has been impeached and convicted by trial in the Senate.” In his original motion to dismiss the indictment, Trump also pointed to the Nixon v.

Fitzgerald ruling, claiming “the exact same, if not more elevated, concerns [in that case] apply to potential criminal prosecutions, mandating the same absolute immunity.” Subjecting presidents to criminal charges would violate the separation of powers between government branches, Trump argued, insisting that impeachment and conviction by the Senate is the “exclusive method of proceeding against a president for crimes in office.” Chief Critic The DOJ Trump is not entitled to immunity from criminal charges, claiming in its appeal to the Supreme Court that “the Constitution’s text, structure, and history do not support that contention.” The DOJ argues Trump’s claims about impeachment being the only way to hold presidents accountable isn’t supported by history and “collapses under the application of common sense.” Prosecutors also point to examples throughout American history to suggest presidents aren’t immune from criminal charges, such as President Gerald Ford having to pardon President Richard Nixon “for all offenses against the United States which he … has committed or may have committed or taken part in” while in office.

“Whatever immunities a sitting President may enjoy, the United States has only one Chief Executive at a time, and that position does not confer a lifelong “get out of jail free” pass,” prosecutors argued. “Former Presidents enjoy no special conditions on their federal criminal liability.” Key Background Trump was indicted on four felony charges for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, one of four pending criminal cases against the ex president and one of two cases involving the 2020 election, along with the Georgia case.

The charges could result in prison time if Trump’s convicted. Trump’s appeal of the presidential immunity question threw a wrench into the federal election case, which prosecutors have tried to shepherd quickly to trial before the 2024 election. Chutkan paused all proceedings in the case after Trump appealed the judge’s order that shut down his motion to dismiss, throwing his planned March trial date into doubt.

The DOJ asked the Supreme Court to take up the case swiftly before the appeals court could rule, in order to keep the proceedings more on schedule, but the high court refused the government’s request without any explanation. Trump is expected to attend the court proceedings on Tuesday, he confirmed on Truth Social Monday.

Further Reading Trump’s Immunity Appeal Hearing In Jan. 6 Criminal Case Is Today—Here’s What To Know (Forbes) Trump Asks Georgia To Throw Out Charges Based On ‘Presidential Immunity’ (Forbes) Court Rules ‘Presidential Immunity’ Doesn’t Get Trump Out Of Jan. 6 Allegations—Again (Forbes) Trump Claims Immunity Against Jan.

6 Lawsuit Because His Efforts To Overturn Election Were Part Of His Presidential Duties (Forbes).